


No One Comes Close

by ItFeelsLikeHome



Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Dating other people, M/M, Reunion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-11
Updated: 2017-08-11
Packaged: 2018-12-14 01:26:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11772597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItFeelsLikeHome/pseuds/ItFeelsLikeHome
Summary: Both Aaron and Robert try to date other people.  However, both realise that they still love one another.Reunion fic.Canon compliantWith thanks to Wiggles247 on here and on DS for the inspiration to have Robert on a date with someone else; thanks to Persi on DS for the inspiration to have Aaron on a date with someone else; and AbsurdDrama on DS for the ideas about how Robert might smell.





	No One Comes Close

Pretending the signs weren’t there hadn’t really been working for Aaron in the previous ten minutes. Within seconds of stepping into the portacabin, the stranger hadn’t tried to mask the fact that he was checking Aaron out. The customer was tall, dark-haired and clean shaven. The stranger had originally been talking to Adam outside about scrapping a car but when he was about to sign the paperwork, Aaron felt the stranger’s eyes drilling into his back. 

‘Do you not want the pen to sign it with?’ Adam had asked the man, which had made it obvious that he was looking elsewhere and not at Adam or the paperwork. 

Aaron had turned around, finding the man staring at him and had given him a smile - friendly and welcoming a customer - but the stranger had returned it with a smile that was longer than was necessary, holding his gaze and making Aaron feel uncomfortable. He’d even found a way to tap Aaron on the shoulder by asking to use one of Aaron’s pens on his desk, completely ignoring the pen Adam had held out for him. Now he was trying to joke with Aaron over some rubbish, corny line that he had said.

Hoping that it was all in his imagination, Aaron didn’t do anything to encourage it because…. Well… he didn’t want to do anything of the sort. But that was before the dark-haired man touched Aaron’s arm with his hand. ‘Call me at some point. You know, if you want to.’ He proffered a business card.

Aaron was a bit wary of taking it, but the man was adamant as he raised his hand higher with the card still clutched in his fingers. 

Studying the card, Aaron gave a perfunctory ‘bye’ as the man walked out of the cabin. Greg Daniels. He seemed to work for a company that bought and sold pipes. How riveting? How not! Before he had chance to stuff the card into his jeans pocket, Adam gave him a knowing smirk.

‘Looks like you’ve pulled there, mate. Are you going to call him?’

‘I don’t know.’ It was the truth. He hadn’t spoken to Robert in about a month – not since he had found out about the scheme to drug Lawrence. Then he had told Robert they were over for good, that they had to be because he couldn’t be with somebody who could do such things to another person, and he thought Robert had changed. He knew that he needed to move away from Robert, but he hadn’t the strength to do it. He hadn’t the courage to find someone new when his first thought on a morning was always about Robert. But why did that surprise him? It was obvious it would happen when his last thought at night, before he succumbed to the world of sleep, was always about Robert. 

Knowing what he wanted to do and doing what he should do were miles apart. The juxtaposition was startling. He knew he wanted to run towards Robert with open arms because his heart would always love him. But his mind and head knew he should be walking away from him. 

‘You should call him. It would be something different to do instead of moping around after Robert for another month.’

‘I haven’t been moping around.’

‘Yes, mate, you have. And I’ve been getting fed up of your mardy face. You need to go out and have some fun.’

It was later when Adam had joined Aaron in the Mill that Adam had nabbed his phone and rang the number. As Adam passed him the phone with an expectant Greg on the other end, Aaron chewed at his top lip feeling less than impressed and really riled up. Producing a cheeky grin, Adam left Aaron to organise the venue for his date. It was Greg’s choice of The Grange, as he had seen it on his way through the village earlier that day. 

Walking over to The Grange, dressed in his black Barbour coat over his grey jumper and his staple black jeans, Aaron felt indifference but he suspected he would feel that way when he hardly knew Greg. It was quite normal to feel indifference when at the moment Greg meant nothing to him, wasn’t it? He realised he should attempt to enjoy the company of a new man because he did need to find someone else. Adam and Vic had told him that. His mum and Liv had mentioned that it needed to happen. They all were quite vehement in the way they seemed to think Aaron moving on was the most important thing in the world. Like if he didn’t move on, the moon would stop shining and the tide would stop turning. Nothing would make sense any more. 

He hadn’t told any of them that things hadn’t been making sense for a long while, but then there was a lot of things he didn’t tell them any more. He hadn’t really known how to respond when they bragged about how well Robert wasn’t doing. How the dark circles had been too prominent under Robert’s eyes for Aaron to pretend he hadn’t seen them. He had seen them, along with the way Robert necked back more than one whiskey too many as he was propping up the bar. Worrying about Robert was becoming something that consumed every day, as thoughts about how Robert was coping - or he guessed not coping - were always at the forefront of his mind. In fact Robert - in some way - consumed his every thought, despite how he had to reprimand himself and say that they weren’t a couple any more. 

But as he walked over to The Grange, he passed Robert coming out of David’s shop and Aaron felt his whole body turn to ice. Any warmth, which he pretended had residence in his body, was ripped out when he saw Robert and felt how cold his life was without that blond hair or those blue-green eyes. He blinked back the tears that he knew would arrive soon and flow down his face. Crying over an ex was not something that he should be doing on any date. Instead his eyes found Robert’s refreshing pools. Still warm and gorgeous in the streetlight. 

‘Hi,’ Robert said. ‘You look nice. Are you off out?’ He appreciatively glanced his eyes up and down Aaron’s body. 

Aaron wanted to smile at Robert’s obvious approval, but instead he dug his feet into the gravel and averted his eyesight to the floor. Happiness welled up in him with that one look from Robert, but he had to dampen it down. 

‘Just to The Grange.’ He thumbed behind him. 

‘With Adam?’

Aaron knew he shouldn’t lie, but how could he possibly tell Robert that he was going on a date with someone new? Why would he want to tell Robert that? It should have been Robert and Aaron against the world; Robert and Aaron forever. 

Instead he was struggling sleeping because he missed every inch of Robert’s body in his bed. Correction: their bed. It would always be their bed especially when it had brought so many happy memories of love, passion and romance. 

And that one devastating one. The baby problem may have disappeared now that the whole village was aware that Ross was the father of Rebecca’s baby, but that hadn’t meant that a reunion between Aaron and Robert was imminent. Robert had been scheming. He was sure Robert had changed, but without him Robert had reverted back to form. 

‘Yeah, Adam,’ Aaron lied. 

Robert’s face fell - eyebrows meeting in the centre of his forehead - and Aaron knew his ex hadn’t bought the lie. 

‘I better go.’

‘Yeah, you don’t want to be late for Adam.’

And as he walked away, glancing back at Robert, he had to blink back the tears that were forming in his eyes. Why did he always feel like his heart was being savagely eaten and destroyed whenever he walked away from Robert? 

***

Five minutes later he was sat in front of Greg feigning interest in whatever rubbish Greg was saying. But all he could do was glance over each part of Greg’s face and body and compare it to someone far superior, far better looking, far funnier and full of more charisma. 

Greg’s hands were small and stubby, far too small in comparison to Robert’s long fingers that wrapped around his own, trailed down the length of his body or even sheathed around his stiffness, gliding up and down until Aaron was begging for more. 

No, he shouldn’t be thinking about Robert in that situation. He needed to focus on Greg. Yes, the man who was sat in front of him smiling. Aaron tried to focus on that smile. Greg’s smile was a bit crooked because his teeth weren’t perfectly arranged in his mouth. In fact the bottom teeth seemed to cave in on themselves in a smaller horseshoe than his jaw. It wasn’t like Robert’s smile. Robert’s smile could light up a night’s sky and each tooth was arranged in a neat row. In fact, the smile was beautiful in the way that it formed along with the glisten in Robert’s eyes. 

Greg’s eyes were a dark brown that seemed quite harsh and distant, but with Robert’s blue-green eyes, well, they were always soft and full of so much love. Robert was a good person, deep down. He’d just made an error of judgement - Aaron knew it. Aaron wanted to believe it. 

He zoned in slightly to hear another one of Greg’s corny jokes about one egg being an oeuf. There was no banter, no flirting between him and Greg. He missed the way him and Robert would throw insults at each other in that playful, flirting way that seemed to be a constant during the whole of their relationship. He ached to do it again, knowing that despite how he would sometimes roll his eyes at Robert, he wanted Robert more than was physically possible. 

The ache he had been ignoring for weeks gnawed away at each limb until he was sure that there would be nothing else left of his body. He was here with a man that was attractive - there was no denying it - but all he wanted was Robert. 

Robert’s morning smile as he snuggled into Aaron, pressing his body against Aaron’s and whispering into his ear all the things he wanted to do to Aaron before they left their bed. His kisses on Aaron’s lips, as Robert did his signature move and grabbed onto Aaron’s neck bringing him in closer so they could devour each other. Robert’s hands on Aaron’s as they travelled in either of their cars on the way to the portacabin or even ventured out of the village. His laugh as they watched a sit-com on television and Robert found the scene or line hilarious that he had to giggle out loud. Robert’s soft voice as he said those three magical words that Aaron always loved hearing, still loved hearing and had felt himself stumble over when he’d said them in the pub. ‘I don’t usually get dumped by the man I love.’

Aaron still loved him. 

Robert’s smell - the tantalising spicy aroma that was so delicious. He would find himself going into the nearest department store and spritzing the same aftershave onto one of those tester strips just so he could sniff the scent for hours afterwards. He dug into his pocket to feel the strip still there from his recent venture out to Hotten. 

Aaron would always love him. Even if he was being scheming and conniving. That had originally been the Robert he had fallen in love with. What were those words Robert had said? That he tried to do better and would keep fighting it? That they made bad mistakes when they were apart. Aaron had even said himself that they were rubbish without each other. They were rubbish without each other. Always would be.

But together they made each other better people, happier people. Why had he forgotten that? Had his perception of reality become that skewed that he had forgotten all the times Robert had supported him and saved his life? Had proven that he loved Aaron? Had shown what an amazing man he was? 

Why was he on a date with another man when all he wanted, all that he needed, was Robert? The realisation lay heavy on his lips that he had to say something and broke Greg off in mid sentence as he was discussing buying and selling pipes. 

‘You know, I thought I could do this but I can’t. I have to go.’ He got up, giving Greg a small look hoping it showed how sorry he was before exiting the door. 

As he was walking back to the Mill, he felt some purpose and control. If he was being honest with himself, he felt butterflies in his stomach for the first time in a long while. He took himself to Keepers Cottage and knocked on the door, but there was no answer. So he trudged back to the Mill and crept into bed wondering why it was so big, and when Robert would be joining him in it once more. 

 

***

Robert could pretend it didn’t hurt as Aaron lied to him about meeting Adam at The Grange. But what would the point be? Why should he lie when the very thought of Aaron with another man was killing him inside? His eyes went to his wedding ring still on his finger after all those months. He fiddled with it, twisting it round his finger and hoping that one day he would make himself take it off. But he couldn’t do it, didn’t want to at all, because it was his one link to Aaron and what they used to be together. Seeing Aaron going off on a date with another man couldn’t change that notion, so he didn’t know what would. 

He took himself out to a bar that night and tried to make small talk with various men. He knew he was getting the eye from some good-looking women, but if Aaron had moved on to another man then so could he. He could shag the man if he really wanted to, shag Aaron right out of his life. It didn’t really matter what he did or how Aaron felt. Or perhaps how Aaron wouldn’t feel about it, since he’d made it pretty clear that he wasn’t interested in Robert any longer. 

There was one man that asked for his number and he gave it willingly because he wanted to parade him in the village. He wanted to say to Aaron, ‘Look, I can move on too. You’re not the only one who thought our relationship was worthless.’

That was a lie because their relationship had been the best of his life, but he should move on. He should do what Victoria and Diane had been telling him for months. 

He thought a question about him still wearing his wedding ring might have emerged, but it didn’t. Some of the men had clocked it, but he just assumed they thought he was married and playing away from home, or possibly even a closeted gay with a loving wife that didn’t know about his secret life. 

The next night he organised a date with Ben: dark-haired, stubble and blue eyes. He knew straight away that Ben was Aaron’s doppleganger and anyone seeing the two of them together at The Grange would know what Robert was doing. He didn’t care. Why should he bother caring when nobody seemed to worry about him? 

‘You know, I haven’t been here in a long while. Not even with my ex,’ Robert said and knew that unless the conversation was moved on swiftly that he would fall into talking about Aaron. He’d been building up his feelings for weeks that he knew a simple question about Aaron would lead to a tumult of emotions and an onslaught of feelings. He wouldn’t be able to stop once he had started because he’d had no-one to confide in for months. 

‘It’s a nice place. The menu looks nice.’

Robert perused the menu and noticed that there was a steak list. ‘Aaron would love the steak menu.’

‘Who’s Aaron?’

‘My ex.’

‘Oh. How long have you been single for?’

‘Three months.’

‘So not long then.’

‘Long enough.’ His face fell and he knew he had to change conversation. ‘What do you do for a living, Ben?’

‘I’m a boxing coach.’

‘Aaron started off boxing not long after we finished. I don’t know whether he’s doing it now or not.’ Everything that he heard reminded him of Aaron. Everything. 

‘What do you do for a living?’

‘I’m a businessman.’

‘Really?’

‘I have two businesses. One is a haulage firm. You might have heard it: Home James. The other one I invested heavily is called Holey Scrap. My ex and his best friend run it.’ He knew he had to stop mentioning Aaron, but Aaron was in his heart and he couldn’t stop no matter how much he tried. He wanted Aaron back in his life. 

Eric came over with a notepad and pen. ‘I didn’t realise you two had got back together. True love can’t keep you apart, eh?’

Robert didn’t respond to the comment because he couldn’t bear to see the pity and sympathy in Eric’s eyes when he realised his error. 

‘What can I get you? Robert?’

‘The fish pie please.’

‘Aaron?’ Eric glanced up from his notepad only to be shocked at what he looked at. ‘Sorry, about that. You looked like Aaron.’ He glanced at Robert. ‘He looks the spit of Aaron, doesn’t he?’

Ben stepped in raising his voice, ‘Look, I’m quite flattered that I look like your ex, but for me this date isn’t working. You’re obviously still hung up on Aaron and that is fine. It’s possibly why you’re still wearing your wedding ring. I just don’t think you should be dating anyone yet, until you are over him.’ Ben got up, pushed his chair aside and left Robert alone staring at Eric. 

‘I’m sorry. I thought it was Aaron,’ Eric offered by way of an apology before asking another table full of diners what they wanted to order. 

***

Three days had passed since Aaron’s failed date with Greg. Aaron had wanted to say something to Robert but every time he tried, Robert pretended he was busy or couldn’t escape the room quick enough. 

They were both in the portacabin at their respective desks. Aaron had been pretending to do some work; however, he was desperate to snake Robert’s eyes away from his laptop, for them to flicker up to him so that they could share a smile. He was desperate to see the smile just like the sun was desperate to shine every day. 

The radio was playing on a medium volume as everybody got on with their work, so when their song came on everybody heard it. Aaron could see Robert recoiling inside himself and look down at his jeans. He thought he could see a tear rolling down Robert’s face as Adele’s voice started serenading them.

‘Hey, Jimmy, do you fancy coming with me to collect some coffees?’ Adam asked. 

‘Can’t Aaron go. I’m...sure I’ll come with you.’ 

Aaron heard the door bang, as Adam and Jimmy left them to it, and he approached Robert’s desk.

‘Robert, we need to talk.’

Robert turned to him, eyes resigned with hopelessness and sorrow. ‘It’s alright. I know you’ve been on a date with someone else. And as long as you’re happy then that is all that matters.’ Tears were ready to fall, they just needed a gentle nudge and Aaron knew Robert would be a crumpled mess on the portacabin floor. 

Robert stood up. ‘I’m going to go and help those two with the coffees.’

‘They’ll be fine. They don’t need three people doing it.’

‘I don’t want to be in here listening to that song.’ Robert’s eyes moved from his and looked down at the floor. ‘I’ll go for a walk instead.’

He started moving towards the door and Aaron knew this was his opening. ‘I want us to try again.’

It did the trick and stopped Robert in his tracks. It had such a startling effect on Robert that it made him turn around. ‘Are you being serious?’

‘I’ve never been more serious in my life.’ Aaron took a tentative step towards Robert. 

‘What changed your mind?’ Robert asked but didn’t close the gap between them. 

‘My date.’ He felt himself getting emotional at the very idea that Robert was the love of his life and he nearly gave up on it because he thought he should, instead of following his heart. The tears stung at the backs of his eyes. ‘He wasn’t you. All I could think about was how he wasn’t you.’

And before Aaron could formulate another thought, Robert’s lips were on his and they were kissing. Sloppy, big fat kisses - hard and fast juxtaposed with soft and slow ones. Whatever they were, they couldn’t get enough of each other. Breaths strained and lips puckered. Aaron’s fingers ran through Robert’s blond hair until they looped around Robert’s neck.

Kissing Robert again made every inch of his body sing with delight and glee. As Robert was peppering warm, amorous kisses on his willing lips, Aaron knew he was finally home. Being with Robert, loving him, kissing him was where he should always be. He never wanted to be anywhere else. 

When the kiss came to a natural conclusion, Aaron’s arms were still on Robert’s neck. ‘So, is that a yes then?’

‘What do you think?’ Robert arched up his eyebrows before producing a grin that Aaron had missed so much. The power of the grin made Aaron echo one in return.

‘I say that was a yes.’

‘I’ve missed you,’ Robert’s statement resounded how Aaron felt inside. 

‘I’ve missed you more.’

**Author's Note:**

> Any comments or feedback will be greatly appreciated. :-)


End file.
